by Mark Shapiro
read the press release
The
new Flip Video ULTRA camcorders are here
- from
Pure Digital.
The new
and improved Flip ULtra Camcorders are
here - with twice as much memory, more
colors and styles, plus a slightly new
design with a tripod screw on the
bottom. Excellent.
The big
news is the improvement in video
quality. The first model offered a
choice of a 1/2 hour version with about
500 megs of memory and a 1 hour version
with 1 gig of memory. The new Ultra
version offers the same recording times
but has doubled the memory bundled
inside to 1 gig and 2 gig.
This
means the video capture quality has
gotten better - from what they
called "TV quality" to what they label
as VGA quality. (640x480 pixels)
Also, by
adding a tripod screw, you can now
better stabilize the camcorder as well
as take video of yourself by using a
tripod. BTW - Flip is now selling a
series of accessories including a
mini-tripod.
The new
power button on the side works better
than the previous power button on the
back of the unit.
In 2005, Pure Digital announced an unique
one time use camcorder – you’d shoot
until the flash memory is filled up and
then you would take it to a drug store
or photo outlet for the digital data to
be burned onto a DVD and then tossed the
camcorder..
This year’s new hip
product is the next step. Using the same
basic technology and product design,
Pure Digital has introduced a very easy
to use, compact camcorder that records
directly to a built in flash memory. You
can still bring it in to have your local
drug store or Photo Shop to create a DVD
for you but now you can transfer the
video out of the camcorder, into your
computer, and burn your own DVDs and
create edited video productions.
Positioned somewhere
between an expensive toy for the kids
and a family camcorder, the Flip Video
camcorder is a very interesting little
product. By little, I do mean small. It
easily fits into a pocket. It is about 3
inches high, 2 and quarter inches wide,
and an only an inch and a quarter deep.
There are two versions –
a one gig version that records for only 30 minutes and
the 2 gig version that will record for 1
hour. I’d recommend
buying the 2
gig version! You will appreciate the
extra half hour of recording time with
just a small bump in the price.
With a list price of about $180, you can
get the 2 gig version at Amazon for
about $150 (see below)
The new Flip Ultra comes in four
colors -- the 1 hour - 2 gig version is
available in white, black, orange and
pink, while the 30-minute (1GB) model is
and only comes in white and black.
It is truly a point and
shoot camcorder. You turn it on, aim it
and press the record button. It includes
a 2x digital zoom that allows you to get
a bit closer to your subject.
Unfortunately, until they manage to
stick a real optical zoom in there, this
digital zoom is pretty useless as it
magnifies both the image size as well as
the noise.
You don’t
have to worry about focus as it is a
fixed focus camcorder. According to the
specs, the focal range starts at about
.8 meter and goes to infinity. However,
I found that when shooting with lots of
light, I could get a good deal closer
and have acceptable focus. As you shoot
and record, it counts down how much time
you have left to on the flash memory to
capture video and audio.
When you are done
shooting or the memory is filled up, you
can review the captured clips on the
camcorder’s LCD screen. If you don’t
like a clip, you can select and delete
it or you can delete all the shots at
once.
You can also watch your videos
back on a TV screen via the included
analog video and audio cables or you can
transfer it to your personal computer.
The Pure Digital Flip Camcorder works
with both Mac and Windows machines.
So where does the flip
come from? It includes a built in USB
2.0 connector that flips out from the
side and enables you to easily transfer
your videos from the camcorder to your
computer.
There is no CD for the
installation software. The software for
video transfer, editing and uploading is
stored on the flash memory inside of the
camcorder and automatically downloads
when you first plug in the camcorder to
your computer. This means that when you
go visit your relatives or go on a trip
with your FlipVideo camcorder, you don’t
have to worry about taking the software
along or forgetting a cable. Its all in
the camcorder.
So how does it look? Is
it good enough for prime time? Well, it
all depends on what you need a camcorder
for. You are not going to win any awards
for cinematography using this camcorder
but the pictures are good enough and fun
enough. It look like good quality analog
VHS.
The camera likes a lot of
light. Indoor shots – especially dark
indoor shots, didn’t look so good. But
if you got near a window, shot in a well
lit room, or went outside in the sun,
the images looked a lot better.
There are not a lot of
buttons to figure out. One button on the
side powers
it up; the red button in the middle
starts recording and the play button
plays back the clips one by one. You
zoom by using the up and down arrows on
the dial around the red record button.
more info
at http://www.theflip.com/
Flip
Video Ultra Data Sheet - Technical
Specifications
So what about the
software.
Amazingly enough, Pure
Digital bundles in a free Windows and
Mac software application that enables
you do to do basic trimming and assembly
of your video clips. You can also burn
your videos directly to a DVD.
Also,
by using the Microsoft Windows software
licensed from muvee, you can create fun
music videos that combine your video
clips with music files on your computer.
You can also grab still images from your
videos.
By the way, you don’t
need to use the Pure Digital software.
When you plug in the camcorder, your
computer will recognize it as a USB
storage device. This means you can
easily click and move files from the
camcorder memory to your hard drive.
So – should you pull out
your credit card and buy this? I think
so. The Pure Digital Flip ULTRA Camcorder is
small, easy to use and lots of fun. And
it works. It runs on
just two AA batteries and the operation
is very simple to figure out. You don't
need to go to film school.
The quality of the captured video and
audio is sufficient for recording most family
activities and events, and perfect for Internet
video posting and email sharing. Because of
the camcorder's
small size and ease of file transfer, this could be a great
solution for capturing video while
traveling.
Even better (or worse),
my kids love this camcorder and I’ll
have a hard time getting it away from
them.
You can buy the the new 2 gig version
at Amazon. Now offering
VGA quality video -
640
by 480 pixels
You
can get
the new Flip Video Camcorder from B&H.